Final Four picks!!!

Four will become two

The 2012 NCAA season has reached the Final Four in New Orleans with Louisville battling Kentucky for the right to represent their state in the Championship game and Kansas squaring off against Ohio State for the other berth.


My bracket was busted long ago and none of my picks for the Final Four made it through after North Carolina and Baylor were beaten last weekend. Oh well, there’s always time to start working on my 2012-2013 predictions!! 


Now on to this weekend’s predictions, may as well try to end on a positive note!!


Louisville vs. Kentucky


This one is bigger than the normal bragging rights tilt which Kentucky won 69-62 on New Year’s Eve.


Form is out of the window for this one, though conventional wisdom says Kentucky should win but Louisville is looking UConn-ish this season.


I have predicted their demise a few times this season so now I will probably put a curse on them by giving the nod to the Wildcats.


Kentucky by 9


Ohio State vs. Kansas


This one is another rematch with Ohio State hoping to reverse a 78-67 loss at Kansas in early December. After losing to Michigan State in the Big 10 title game the Buckeyes have picked themselves up and powered through the tourney. 


The story is the same for Kansas who have advanced after losing to Baylor in the Big 12 title affair.


This time around, the game will be closer and I will have to give the slight edge to Ohio State on a neutral court.


Ohio State by 4


I will have a quick look at the NCAA Women’s Final Four tomorrow along with preparing my pick for Monday night’s championship game.

NCAA dill bracket tips off!!!

NCAA 2012 Regional Games begin!!!

The 2012 NCAA tournament kicks off with regional action from the East, South and West regionals on Thursday (Friday morning Aussie time).

So far I am glad I don’t get paid per correct pick as I went 0fer in the First Four play in games!! Hopefully my luck will change now that the main bracket is set….you can see my picks for my Yahoo bracket here or my ESPN one here. They vary slightly due to the current situation with the Syracuse team. In one I have Vanderbilt joining Baylor, North Carolina and Marquette in the Final Four with Carolina beating Baylor for the title. In the other I have Florida State instead of Vandy but the same result for the final.

Ok…let’s jump in and pick ‘em!!

Thursday’s Games

West Region:

Weirdly the early games are from the West regional in Louisville Kentucky.

Colorado State (11) vs. Murray State (6)

Murray State by 12

Davidson (13) vs. Louisville (4)

First upset!! Davidson by 7

BYU (14) vs. Marquette (3)

BYU played in to get bounced out by 14

Long Beach State (12) vs. New Mexico (5)

New Mexico by 4

East Region:

Southern Miss (9) vs. Kansas State (8)

Kansas State by 3

Montana (13) vs. Wisconsin (4)

Wisconsin by 16

UNC-Asheville (16) vs. Syracuse (1)

Syracuse by 17

Harvard (12) vs. Vanderbilt (5)

Vandy by 11

West Virginia (10) vs. Gonzaga (7)

Gonzaga by 3

Loyola, MD (15) vs. Ohio State (2)

Ohio State by 22

South Region:

W. Kentucky (16) vs. Kentucky (1)

Kentucky by 30

VCU (12) vs. Wichita State (5)

VCU pulls the their firs upset this year by 6

South Dakota State (14) vs. Baylor (3)

Baylor by 22

UConn (9) vs. Iowa State (8)

UConn by 9

New Mexico State (13) vs. Indiana (4)

New Mexico State by 3 in a minor upset

Colorado (11) vs. UNLV (6)

UNLV by 10

Ok…I’m 0-4 so far….back with more tomorrow….

Day Two NCAA 2012...

First Four…Day 2

I did not start off my predictions for the 2012 NCAA Tourney with the best form, going 0-2 in the first days games. So I am looking for a better result in Wednesday’s games (Thursday AM Aussie time).

Vermont (23-11) vs. Lamar (23-11)

These two are pretty evenly matched but Lamar played a slightly tougher schedule and has a Knight at the helm….Pat Knight, son of Bobby coaches the Cardinals.

In the end I’ll tip the Cardinals for the win.

South Florida (20-13) vs. California (24-9)

Cal limps into this one after losing three of the last four while South Florida has dropped two of their last three.

I do not expect either of these teams to go far in the main bracket and as for this game….I’ll say Cal by 10-15...

Tomorrow I’ll be back with picks for the full first days of action in the main bracket….til then…get ready for some long days!!!

NCAA play in games....

Let’s Play(In) NCAA Style

The time is upon us…the 2012 NCAA tournament gets underway Tuesday (Wed AM Aussie time) when Western Kentucky tangles with Mississippi Valley State and Brigham Young faces off against Iona.

Western Kentucky (15-18) vs. Mississippi Valley State (21-12)

Western Kentucky pulled a surprise in the Sun Belt conference tourney winning it with a losing record while Miss. Valley State has won 20 of their last 21 games and swept through the SWAC regular season and tournament.

Look for the delta Devils to get a first up tourney win.

BYU (25-8) vs. Iona (25-7)

BYU’s record is deceiving, though without “Jimmer” and after downgrading to the West Coast Conference, the Cougars did not have things go their way as easily as first thought.

Iona gained an at-large bid in spite of losing the MAAC final against Fairfield and will be a tough foe for BYU.

No run for the Cougars this year, Iona in a close one.

I will be back with me first round picks tomorrow…enjoy the games….

Let the Madness Begin!!

Finally….”The Chuck” has come back to his basketball blog…and not a moment too soon…..it is March after all.

We are at the final weekend of the regular season for most NCAA teams with conference tournaments going into full drive next week. But before next week, my focus will be on the rematch between North Carolina and Duke Saturday night!! Most of my Facebook friends who follow the Devils from Durham have been quite delighted that my background at: www.facebook.com/ChuckDownUnder has been the Duke logo since February 8. Well Dookies….let’s see if any of you will take up the challenge of using the UNC logo as yours after we #OccupyCameron on Saturday!!

Ok…now looking through the conferences here are my observations:

America East: http://www.americaeast.com

Currently Stony Brook, Vermont and Boston University are battling for the conference regular season crown. Only the tourney winner will go dancing from this conference.

Atlantic Coast: http://www.theacc.com/sports/m-baskbl/acc-m-baskbl-body.html

There are three locks…Duke, North Carolina and Florida State from the ACC for NCAA action. Duke and Carolina are expected to go deep … hmm…will we finally see Duke vs. Carolina in the Big Dance?

Virginia will need a quality win or two in the ACC tourney to go dancing. The story is similar for NC State and Miami, Fla. With both needing a run in the ACC tourney.

Atlantic Sun: http://www.atlanticsun.org/mbasketball

Belmont looks to be head and shoulders above the rest of the conference but will still need to sweep through the tournament.

Atlantic 10: http://www.atlantic10.com/sports/m-baskbl/atl10-m-baskbl-body.html

Temple is pretty much a lock with St. Louis nearly there. One, possibly two more bids will go to teams from the group of St. Bonaventure, Xavier, St. Joe’s, UMass, LaSalle and Dayton.

Big East: http://www.bigeast.org/Sports/MensBasketball.aspx

Syracuse, Marquette, Notre Dame and Georgetown have pretty much punched their tickets to the dance. Louisville is just about there with S. Florida, Cincy, Seton Hall and possibly UConn or West Virginia advancing.

Big Sky: http://www.bigeast.org/Sports/MensBasketball.aspx

Expect Montana or Weber St. to advance.

Big South: http://www.bigsouthsports.com/SportSelect.dbml?DB_OEM_ID=4800&SPID=1987&SPSID=25346

UNC-Asheville will face surprise finalist VMI for the NCAA bid in the championship game.

Big 10: http://www.bigten.org/sports/m-baskbl/big10-m-baskbl-body.html

Michigan State has battled to the top of the conference and there are some who will say they are a #1 seed. To that I remind them of losses to both Duke and North Carolina!!

Ohio State, Michigan, Wisconsin and Indiana should be in with Purdue needing at least two more wins to get a look. Northwestern….I’m rooting for you to make a run in the conference tourney to finally get that bid!!

Big 12: http://www.big12sports.com/SportSelect.dbml?&DB_OEM_ID=10410&SPID=13134&SPSID=106110

The Big 12 will get at least five bids with either Kansas State or Texas joining Kansas, Missouri, Baylor and Iowa State.

Pending tournament performance, both teams could go dancing.

Big West: http://www.bigwest.org/sports/mbball

Long Beach St. has stormed through conference play without a loss and has played enough quality competition outside of the league to gain a bid.

Colonial: http://www.caasports.com/ViewArticle.dbml?DB_OEM_ID=8500&ATCLID=204843910

Though the conference will only get 1-2 bids, they deserve more. Drexel, VCU, George Mason and Old Dominion are the challengers for the title and all are capable of another NCAA run from the conference.

Conference USA: http://www.conferenceusa.com/sports/m-baskbl/c-usa-m-baskbl-body.html

Memphis and Southern Miss look to be the cream of the crop…probably only one team from this conference will go dancing.

Horizon League: http://www.horizonleague.org/mens-basketball.html

Butler is making a late season run and advanced to the conference semi-finals against regular season leaders Valparaiso. The conference tourney winner will have to only NCAA bid.

Ivy: http://www.ivyleaguesports.com/sports/mbkb/index

Harvard and Penn look to be headed for a playoff for the NCAA bid.

MAAC: http://www.maacsports.com/SportSelect.dbml?DB_OEM_ID=17400&SPID=10446&SPSID=87906

Iona is the favourite for conference crown and NCAA bid.

Mid-America: http://www.mac-sports.com/Sports/BasketballM.aspx

The MAC has had a down year, expect only the tourney winner to go dancing and Akron goes in as the favourite.

MEAC: http://www.meacsports.com/SportSelect.dbml?DB_OEM_ID=20800&SPID=12094&SPSID=98180

Conference’s only bid will most likely go to Savannah State, Norfolk State or Delaware State.

Missouri Valley: http://mvc-sports.com/

Wichita State and Creighton both deserve a dance card!!

Mountain West: http://www.themwc.com/sports/m-baskbl/mwc-m-baskbl-body.html

Three bids should go to this conference….UNLV, New Mexico and San Diego State. Colorado State could sneak in with an upset in the conference tourney.

Northeast Conference: http://www.northeastconference.org/index.aspx?path=mbball&tab=mensbasketball

Wagner, Long Island and Robert Morris are still kicking in the conference tourney with one of them likely to go dancing….I’ll say Wagner.

Ohio Valley: http://www.ovcsports.com/SportSelect.dbml?&DB_OEM_ID=6200&SPID=2443&SPSID=31039

Murray State has won the conference tournament and will be dangerous in the NCAA’s.

PAC 12: http://www.pac-12.org/SPORTS/BasketballM.aspx

The conference has had a quiet year and may get lucky with three bids. Figure them to go to Washington, Cal, Arizona or Oregon.

Patriot: http://www.patriotleague.org/sports/m-baskbl/patr-m-baskbl-body.html

Lehigh, Bucknell or American should go dancing after the conference tournament.

Southeastern: http://www.secdigitalnetwork.com/SECSPORTS/SPORTS/BASKETBALLM.aspx

Conference should get six bids with Kentucky as a possible overall #1 Seed for the NCAA tourney. The question is can Kentucky avoid the upset on the big stage??

Expect Florida, Vandy, Alabama, Tennessee and Mississippi State to join the Wildcats in the Big Dance.

Southern Conference: http://www.soconsports.com/SportSelect.dbml?&DB_OEM_ID=4000&SPID=1798&SPSID=22064

Conference tournament is underway with the always dangerous Davidson squad as favourites.

Southland: http://www.southland.org/SportSelect.dbml?DB_OEM_ID=18400&SPID=10825&SPSID=90089

Texas-Arlington is the favourite to win the conference tournament.

SWAC: http://www.swac.org/SportSelect.dbml?&DB_OEM_ID=27400&SPID=93277&SPSID=632830

Miss Valley State has run through the regular season impressively and will be tourney favourites.

Summit: http://www.thesummitleague.org

Oral Roberts is the favourite to advance here.

Sun Belt: http://www.sunbeltsports.org/SportSelect.dbml?&DB_OEM_ID=4100&SPID=1825&SPSID=22326

Middle Tennessee State goes into the conference tourney as the favourite to go dancing.

West Coast Conference:

http://www.wccsports.com/sports/m-baskbl/west-m-baskbl-body.html

The conference has three worthy teams, St. Mary’s, Gonzaga and BYU….will they get the three bids?? Stay tuned….

WAC: http://www.wacsports.com/SportSelect.dbml?DB_OEM_ID=10100&SPID=4126

Nevada looks solid for the NCAA’s. New Mexico State will need a run to get to the bubble.

That will do it for now….back with a look at the Aussie seasons and some NBA stuff in a few days.

NCAA Final

NCAA Men’s Final

Well, the denouement is neigh for the 2010-2011 NCAA basketball season. Of course my bracket is shattered, of course my picks in the semi final games were wrong, of course I’ll attempt to pick the winner of the championship game and this will be my last prediction of this year’s college season.

The Final:

Butler vs. UConn

Well one UConn team has bitten the dust in the Final Four after the Husky ladies suffered a shock loss to Notre Dame in the semi finals. As for the men’s team, they come in a slight favourite over Butler although the Bulldogs are in the championship game for the second year in a row.

Prediction wise I will go with Butler due to their nucleus of players left over from last season. UConn will not get away with another bad performance like the one they put forward against Kentucky

So….

Butler wins 66-62.

My tourney picking record for 2011: 40 right-24 wrong

NCAA Regional Finals

Regional Finals Day Two

We are now two games away from knowing the final four teams in the 2011 NCAA Men’s Basketball Tournament. After two exciting games on Saturday where I was wrong on both counts, UConn and Butler booked tickets for Houston next weekend.

In today’s games…..

EAST REGIONAL Final:

Kentucky (4) vs. North Carolina (2)

Back in December, North Carolina escaped with a two point (75-73) win over Kentucky and will be looking for another tough game this time around. Both teams have improved but look for Carolina to use its front line advantage to pull this one out by 6.

SOUTHWEST REGIONAL Final:

VCU (11) vs. Kansas (1)

Kansas is heavily favoured and on a roll but may be a bit too cocky when facing giant killers VCU. There was a lot of trash talking from the Jayhawks in the Richmond game … is that wise when you have to face another team from the same city?? Though the Rams had a loss to Richmond during the regular season, it does not equate an automatic Kansas win. Gut tells me VCU by 4.

Tourney Record: 40 right – 22 wrong

NCAA Hoops...

Two Final Four tickets up for grabs

Saturday sees two of the four Regional finals on tap for the weekend. In yesterdays games I went a perfect 4-0 tipping both Kentucky and VCU for big wins.

For Saturday’s action…

SOUTHEAST Regional Final:

Butler (8) vs. Florida (2)

Butler has made another surprise run in this years tournament but this year I don’t think it will continue. Florida is a solid squad and Chandler Parsons will prove to be the difference in this one. Gators by 10.

WEST Regional Final:

Arizona (5) vs. Connecticut (3)

This one will be a barn burner, UConn have been on a hot streak lately while Arizona have been a surprise to many outside of the Western USA. I think UConn’s run will finally end. ‘Zona by 7.

Current Record: 40 right-20 wrong…….

NCAASweet 16, Day 2.

Sweet 16 part deux

The Sweet 16 Round of the NCAA Men’s basketball tournament concludes on Friday with games in San Antonio, Texas and Newark, New Jersey. My Thursday picks fell by the wayside with only Florida advancing. Similarly my Final Four picks are gone with the exception of North Carolina. For Thursday’s games I went 1-3 pick wise.

Fridays picks…

SOUTHWEST REGION:

Richmond (12) vs. Kansas (1)

The city of Richmond will have a strong fan base in San Antonio with the hometown Spiders and VCU both playing there. First up, Richmond clashes with Kansas. This one could catch Kansas looking ahead but the Jayhawks will hold on and pull away late by 11.

Virginia Commonwealth (11) vs. Florida State (10)

VCU may be able to hang on against the tough Seminole “D”. Rams by 5.

EAST REGION:

North Carolina (2) vs. Marquette (11)

Former title game opponents square off in regional semis in this one. Carolina has had some close calls but this one may be easier. UNC by 12.

Kentucky (4) vs. Ohio State (1)

Kentucky has a solid run going but Ohio State is out to live up to the hype. Hmm….I’ll call and upset …Kentucky by 3.

Ok, back in a day or so with Regional final picks….

Current Record: 36 right – 20 wrong…

NCAA Sweet 16

Sweet 16 …Here we go!!!

The 2011 edition of the Men’s NCAA basketball tourney is here. Well I did not get my six correct last Sunday but went 5-3 on the day. One of my Final Four picks…Notre Dame fell by the wayside thanks to Florida State so I’m down to North Carolina, Wisconsin and San Diego State with my title game picks of Wisconsin and UNC still alive.

Here we go for Thursday’s games.

WEST REGION:

Connecticut (3) vs. San Diego State (2)

UConn has had a good run thus far but San Diego State also has a chip on their shoulders and is out to prove they are an elite outfit. Look for the Aztecs to stifle Kemba Walker and pull out a 3 point win.

Arizona (5) vs. Duke (1)

My “Duke Beaters”…the Texas Longhorns were upset by ‘Zona so I will go with ACC loyalty for this game at least and put “the curse” on Duke by picking them to win by 7.

SOUTHEAST REGION:

Brigham Young (3) vs. Florida (2)

BYU have been the “darlings” of the tourney so far but the Gators are out to avenge last years early round loss to the Cougars…..could come down to a Jimmer miss. Florida by 2.

Butler (8) vs. Wisconsin (4)

Butler is as dangerous as ever but the Badgers are looking solid so I am sticking by them. Wisconsin by 8.

Current Record: 35-17

Back tomorrow for the second day of Sweet 16 pick

NCAA Sunday games....

Sunday NCAA

After mixed results Saturday where I had an even 4-4 split, off we go to Sunday’s menu of games in the 2011 NCAA Men’s basketball tournament. West Virginia, Pitt, Gonzaga and Cincy did not live up to my hype on Saturday so I’m looking for at least six correct picks today. Here we go.

SOUTHWEST:

VCU (11) vs. Purdue (3)

The Richmond area seems to be on a roll…I’ll take the Rams to keep it going over Purdue by 4.

Illinois (9) vs. Kansas (1)

Could be a tricky one for Kansas but they will pull this one out by 7.

Florida State (10) vs. Notre Dame (2)

This one could easily be mistaken as being in the wrong season, would be a vintage gridiron match with Bowden against Holtz back in the day. But they are on the hardwood and the Irish will get lucky by 8.

WEST:

Michigan (8) vs. Duke (1)

Duke moves on by 12.

Arizona (5) vs. Texas (4)

‘Horns “hook” ‘em by 9.

EAST:

Washington (7) vs. North Carolina (2)

Carolina by 10.

George Mason (8) vs. Ohio State (1)

George Mason goes down gallantly by 6.

Marquette (11) vs. Syracuse (3)

The second of the weekends Big East battles…..Syracuse gets through by 11.

Current Record: 30-14

That will do it for now….Sweet Sixteen up next!!!

NCAA Hoops...

And now there are 32

As the NCAA Men’s tournament enters Saturday and Sunday games my bracket has gone kaput….my final four picks are all still alive but some of my other picks fell by the wayside. I did however tip both George Mason and VCU wins. For Friday’s games, I finished the same as Thursday…11-5.

Here we go for Saturday.

SOUTHWEST:

Morehead State (13) vs. Richmond (12)

Both teams come in off huge wins but I’ll take Richmond to move on by 7.

WEST:

Temple (7) vs. San Diego State (2)

San Diego State by 8.

Cincinnati (6) vs. Connecticut (3)

Big East survivors face off; I’ll call the minor upset, Cincy by 2.

EAST:

West Virginia (5) vs. Kentucky (4)

West Virginia sneaks through by 1.

SOUTHEAST:

UCLA (7) vs. Florida (2)

Florida moves on by 6.

Butler (8) vs. Pitt (1)

Pitt by 3.

Gonzaga (11) vs. Brigham Young (3)

Goodbye Jimmer, Gonzaga by 4.

Kansas State (5) vs. Wisconsin (4)

Wisconsin holds off K-State by 3.

Current record: 26-10

Back tomorrow for a look at Sunday’s action.

NCAA Play....

NCAA Regionals Day 2

NCAA Men’s tourney Round of 64 play picks up again on Friday with another 16 games on tap. On Thursday I finished 11-5 for the day, with Richmond’s win over Vanderbilt my best tip of the day. Other upsets included Morehead State eliminating Louisville and Gonzaga bouncing St. John’s from the field.

Friday’s action includes:

EAST:

Villanova (9) vs. George Mason (8)

Another Big East team bites the dust. GMU by 3.

Texas-San Antonio (16) vs. Ohio State (1)

Ohio State by 23.

Long Island (15) vs. North Carolina (2)

UNC by 18.

Marquette (11) vs. Xavier (6)

Xavier by 7.

Georgia (10) vs. Washington (7)

Washington by 6.

Indiana State (14) vs. Syracuse (3)

Syracuse by 13.

SOUTHWEST:

Akron (15) vs. Notre Dame (2)

Notre Dame by 17.

Florida State (10) vs. Texas A&M (7)

A&M by 3.

Boston University (16) vs. Kansas (1)

Kansas by 30.

St. Peter’s (14) vs. Purdue (3)

Purdue by 16.

Illinois (9) vs. UNLV (8)

UNLV by 5.

Virginia Commonwealth (11) vs. Georgetown (6)

VCU does it again by 4.

WEST:

Oakland (13) vs. Texas (4)

Texas by 11.

Tennessee (9) vs. Michigan (8)

Tennessee by 2.

Memphis (12) vs. Arizona (5)

Another #12 wins, Memphis by 4.

Hampton (16) vs. Duke (1)

Duke by 23

My current record: 15-5

See ya’ tomorrow!!!

NCAA on tap!!!

NCAA Brackets crank up!!!

After two days of “First Four” games, the 2011 NCAA Men’s Basketball tournament gets into full swing Thursday. Thus far I am a perfect 4-0 in picking tourney games. So time to jump into prognostications full swing!! Some of my picks may differ from my overall bracket in which I have picked Wisconsin, North Carolina, San Diego State and Notre Dame as my Final Four with Carolina taking the title from the Badgers.

My first round picks for Thursday are:

EAST:

Clemson (12) vs. West Virginia (5)

West Virginia by 5

Princeton (13) vs. Kentucky (4)

Kentucky by 12

WEST:

Penn State (10) vs. Temple (7)

Temple by 4

Northern Colorado (15) vs. San Diego State (2)

S.D. State by 14

Bucknell (14) vs. Connecticut (3)

UConn by 17

Missouri (11) vs. Cincinnati (6)

Cincy by 8

SOUTHWEST:

Morehead State (13) vs. Louisville (4)

Louisville by 10

Richmond (12) vs. Vanderbilt (5)

The 5 vs. 12 upset!! Richmond by 7

SOUTHEAST:

Old Dominion (9) vs. Butler (8)

ODU too strong on the boards…..Monarchs by 11

UNC-Asheville (16) vs. Pittsburgh (1)

Pitt by 20

Cal-Santa Barbara (15) vs. Florida (2)

Florida by 22

Wofford (14) vs. Brigham Young (3)

BYU by 16

Belmont (13) vs. Wisconsin (4)

Wisconsin by 8

Michigan State (10) vs. UCLA (7)

Michigan State by 4

Gonzaga (11) vs. St. John’s (6)

St. John’s by 3

Utah State (12) vs. Kansas State (5)

Utah State by 2

Ok, there are my first day regional picks. Enjoy the games…….

My current record: 4-0

NCAA Play-In Games

Let the Play-In Begin

Now we get to the start of the Madness of March!! With the new expanded 68 team format in place, play-in games on Tuesday and Wednesday will serve as appetisers for the main course of the full bracket.

Play-In Games:

Clemson vs. Alabama-Birmingham

UAB suffered a first round loss in their conference tourney but were rewarded with a controversial bid to the Big Dance much to the chagrin of Virginia Tech and Colorado. In this one I think the pedigree of the ACC will win out.

Prediction: Clemson by 7 or more.

UNC-Asheville vs. Arkansas-Little Rock

In a game featuring teams that made surprise runs through their conference tournaments Arkansas-Little Rock finished the regular season with a three game losing streak while UNC-Asheville has won six in a row. I think the Big South crew may pull it out.

Prediction: UNC-Asheville by 3.

Virginia Commonwealth vs. Southern California

Many have said that VCU does not belong but the Rams are a solid team and will give USC fits.

Prediction: VCU by 5.

Texas-San-Antonio vs. Alabama State

Two more surprise tourney winners in this one. Not much is known about either squad but I will go with the Texans.

Prediction: UTSA by 6.

I will be back in a day or so with my full bracket picks, until then tune in and enjoy the action.